Poetry Reading

The Kingdom of Yorke: Final Draft

By: Andrew Boettcher

Gather round little knights and young maidens

For a story, a tale I shall tell

Its sad, bittersweet, But a telling complete

Gather round, gather round, gather round…

There once was a land

The roads lined with gold

The low valleys hot

And the tall mountains cold

The rivers ran wide

The passes ran narrow

Where shields and swords

Met the bows and the arrows…

Where our forefathers landed

And drew up a name

Forsaking all others

And staking their claim

They fought the savages

Til' battles grew still

A servant searched his master out

With parchment and a quill…

He found him alone

On the highest hillside

He poured steaming sweat

A wild gaze in his eyes

His shield was broad

And his armor was old

Forged for his honor

From a once fiery mold…

He approached him ever slow

And he kept his voice low

Speaking the softest

And sweetest of tones…

He said, sire, the war is won

The land is ours, your will be done

The fallen were few but the cost it is high

The rivers of blood have run full before dry

The knight raised his hand

And a silence ensued

As he cast his arm broadly

So steady and smooth

He spoke in a hushed tone

Like never before

As he gazed from the south

To the west and the north…

He said, we shall call this golden land

From mountains of stone

To the last grains of sand

Its name therefore shall be evermore

The Kindgom of Yorke, The Kingdom of Yorke…

Over time they ventured in

To find a land so free of sin

The rivers pure as holy water

Innocent as virgin daughters

Scattered skies of cotton clouds

Overhead, a veil, a shroud

Untamed nature wild and mean

The warmest land they'd ever seen…

The land spanned the country

From sea to shining sea

Supple Earth of milk and honey

Far as could be seen

The thick and vicious forests

Swathed the timberlands of old

Protecting Mother Nature

In its thick and twisting folds…

Endless seas of grain

Nursed by storms of gentle rain

Rolling hills of green

Cast their glimmer and their sheen

The purple mountains majesty

Would only prove a travesty

As we would all too soon forget

Our greatest loss and tragedy…

I regret to say

That this story's not my own

But the tale has to spread

And the legend has to grow

I swear it's not a myth

And declare it's not a lie

To dishonor my name

Is a fate worse than to die…

Let us travel back

To a tale of a tale

A story that's so sobering

That drunk’s lay down their ales

Forever…

And here is how it came to me…

Many years ago

As I walked down a cobble road

That was where I found him

And my life would change tenfold…

He leaned against a tree

Gasping as he breathed

His spirit shook the leaves

As his body strained and heaved…

Behind a mask of gin

He concealed a smirking grin

Each time he fetched his jack

He'd swing forward then swing back

Knowing as he was

He was lost inside his soul

His face burnt from the sun

And his eyes they looked so old…

Rapped in ragged soldiers clothes

A worn and weathered sheath

Long and scraggly hair

And a mouth of yellow teeth

I wandered over to him

And I helped the man to town

I sensed his end was near

So I bought the man a round...

We introduced ourselves

And his stories they would pour

As though they were the wines

From the tavern keepers store

This man had seen the world

And he bragged about it so

I have to say he looked it

He was wore down to the bone…

We laughed and drank and sang and ate

Well into the night

Far past the criers calls

Until the morning light

It seemed we’d reach no end

Although his fate would quickly twist

His eyes glazed over as he fell

And tried to grab my wrist…

I rushed to his side

As tears filled my eyes

I knew it was his end

And I’d have to watch him die

He drew me close to him

And he spoke into my ear

His voice had changed its sound

It was clear and so sincere…

Dear boy, my time has come

My life on Earth is done

My charge I pass to you

If you swear to see it done...

“I shall” I say to him…

“I shall spread this legend to the world until my dying breath…”

Very well…An immortal man was I

Don’t mourn me, don’t cry

I never thought I’d live to see

The day that I would die

A thousand years ago

This legend came to me

You would not believe

All the wonders I have seen…

The Earth has seen in you

A goodness born anew

Therefore its my duty that

I pass this right to you

Now God will let me rest, assured you’ll pass the test

It shall be your mission and your life’s enduring quest…

He placed his palm upon my head

And drew me near once more

The visions that he sent me

Made me wish I’d not seen more

I saw the fall of Kingdoms past

The blood, the death, the fear

The devastating echoes now

All seemed so crystal clear

The fields burned, the skies grew stark

The soil ran dry, once light now dark

Over and over, failing, falling

An endless end in a timeless time

How’d it come to pass ?

Who, Where, When, and Why ?

Should I stand and fight ?

Or hide and softly cry ?

So many questions in my mind

So much to know, so little time

His hand slid down, his story told

His flesh wore thin and he went cold…

His body vanished from the ground

A gust of wind, and eerie sounds

Then came his voice, roaring down

It shook the silent sleeping town

He boomed,

11 of 9, Look to the skies

Don’t dare forget or else you’ll lament

Horsemen from the East

Will come riding silver beasts

Flying high in the sky

And on freedom they will feast

They’ll bring the castles down

They will smite them to the ground

You will try to fight them

Evil men will knock you down

Spewing foul deceptions and immaculate deceits

They will not be rested

until you admit defeat…

The masses they will turn

And defend the other side

They will see you guilty

As you’re fighting for their rights

Freedom they’ll be after

And slavery they’ll bring

Tell the legend if you like

Tell it softly as you sing

For if you tell it loudly

Then the constables shall hear

They’ll drag you to the dungeon

And replace it all with fear

They will try to teach it first

Then tear it out of you

Fade it into fable

‘Til your honor’s been consumed…

There won’t be a single reason

It will come at fall’s first season

Autumn serves this paradox

Come half the days to equinox

For this shall be our judgment day

Don’t forget this dreadful date

I’ve done all that I can do

Now I trust the rest to you…

Then he spoke in tongues,

KROY WEN! KROY WEN!

11 of 9, 11of 9

KROY WEN! KROY WEN!

11 of 9, 11 of 9, 11 of 9, 11of 9

11…of…9…

These were his poor dying words

He confessed them all to me

They would never be reheard

Except when passed to thee

The Kingdom of Yorke

Has fallen once before

Until my time on earth is done

I’ll let it fall no more…

Recall this very day

When you are old and gray

You all have been forewarned

Let not this memory be scorned…

Off to bed little knights and young maidens

For a story a tale I have told

It was sad, bittersweet, but I told it complete…

Pass it on, pass it on, pass it on…